Carmine goes to the Citadel
by GrubKillerClayton
Summary: How Clayton Carmine, a Gear of the COG, became an alliance soldier when the Reapers hit Sera.


6 years ago, Marcus Fenix's squad of Gears destroyed the Locust and the Lambent. 3 years later, a science team located a Mass Relay, but it was not for another two years that they were able to understand it and use it.

During this time, Clayton Carmine, still enraged over the deaths of his younger brothers, Anthony and Benjamin, was searching with a small squad of Gears in the sunken cities to locate the remnants of savage locust, who had survived the purge. (Likely due to the fact that they were underground) At this point, the ground above them shook. they felt the heat of the air above them, as though a Hammer strike was being aimed at the ground above them. But all remaining Hammer of Dawn satellites had been stripped for parts, on orders of Fenix - who had died four years after defeating the Locust.

Carmine decided that the current mission had to be abandoned, his team would have to get groundside to help with whatever had happened. However, this journey would take days.

Above ground, the sentient machines known as the Reapers had arrived. The COGs discovery of the Mass Relay had sealed their fate. They were ready to be "harvested". Desolation followed in those days. What remained of an already decimated Gear army fought hopelessly against forces in command of technology greater than they could ever imagine. In the four days that it had taken for Clay to return to the surface, to where Jacinto once stood, the newly reorganised COG had once again fallen to disarray.

Clay wanted to stay. It was never his choice to leave a fight. But on orders from senior command, Carmine was forced onto a ship bound for the Mass Relay. Someone built it, and whoever had either owed an explanation, or would have to help.

Clay programmed the shuttle to take him to the most recent location - something called "The Citadel".

The journey took days. days in which Carmine was forced to sit and think of his burning world. But when he arrived... nothing had ever struck him a with such awe. he was surprised to be greeted with a human voice. "Welcome to the Citadel, you are in an unregistered vehicle. please proceed to Security Bay S32." Clayton was overwhelmed, and unarmed. he couldn't hope to defeat the enemy - if it was an enemy - with a Lancer and a Torque Bow. He parked in the bay. When he exited he saw a man – though it wasn't a man, it was taller, it looked strange. Later he would know this as a Turian. But for now, Clayton Carmine though he had landed on the Locust homeworld.

He pulled out his Lancer. Or he tried to. Before he could the Locust raised his arm, with an orange glow attached to it – something he would later know as an Omni-Tool – which place cuffs over Clayton's hands. Carmine wasn't a fan of being a tortured prisoner. Dom had told him about how the Locust had treated Tai Kaliso. He struggled. The locust picked him up, laughed and said:  
"You're the stupidest refugee I've ever seen! Where did you come from Human?" Clay struggled, he wouldn't indulge the whims of an enemy. "Fine..." the Locust muttered, "You'll tell us in interrogation room C, doesn't that sound fun?"

It took hours, maybe days, for Clay to tell his story of how he had gotten there, of the men dying on Sera. It took even longer to convince the "C-Sec Officers" to believe him. It took longer still, and the human face of a Commander Bailey, to convince Clay that he wasn't the hostage of Locust.

They laughed at that name. Locust. They were confused as to why a bug would inspire such hate in a man. Clay's only reply was: "when a monster kills your family. You destroy the monster. That's what the Locust are. There's no better way to describe that filth." This made the interrogators more serious.

It was weeks before he was able to understand the truth of the Galaxy. Asari, Turians, Salarians, Krogan. He convinced C-Sec to grant him an audience with the council. They listened. They sent scouts to Sera. It was gone. The scouts said that it was like men with guns versus children with wooden swords. Never stood a chance. He was surprised the council had taken him seriously. It probably had much to do with the fact that the human, Udina, had taken sympathy with the lonely Gear and convinced the others a scouting party would cost them nothing.

Months past. Clay found himself making friends with the Turian officer, Nuhlin, who had first arrested him. He also heard rumours of a Commander Shepard, of the Alliance, who was fighting the Reapers. Clayton Carmine felt inspired whenever he heard that name. He had been out of the fight too long. He Joined the Alliance the next day. Private Clayton Carmine. He hadnt been a private for 13 years. As a special case. It was left up to the "Grub Killer" as they had started calling him, as to which ship he sailed on.

Clayton Carmine only ever had one in mind.


End file.
